Burkinabè and Malian Internet users claim that a French journalist, who traveled illegally to Mali, was killed during a Malian army strike. The portrait of the supposed journalist shared by these Internet users is in fact that of a fashion model.

Published on: 04/05/2026 - 18:22

On April 25, the Support Group for Islam and Muslims (Jnim), a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda, launched an offensive in Mali coordinated with the Tuareg rebels of the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) on a scale not seen in 14 years.

Internet users supporting the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which includes Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali, then rushed to accuse, without proof, France of having supported the Jnim and FLA attacks, or even of having participated in them through "mercenaries".

Since May 3, a new conspiracy theory targeting France has been spreading on social networks, relayed by Internet users and Burkinabè and Malian media: an alleged French journalist, "Pierre Le Villiers Aros", is said to have died during strikes by the Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) north of Kidal, a key town in the far north of Mali, which fell into the hands of the FLA on April 26. In comments, Internet users claim that the journalist was in fact a “spy”, or even a “soldier”.

The posts announcing the supposed death of the journalist claim that the latter "illegally entered Mali via Algeria", the other country accused of having supported the terrorist attacks. The news of his death was first relayed by a so-called Kabyle newspaper, Kabylie 24, which is close to a movement advocating the independence or autonomy of Kabylia.

Finally, pro-AES Internet users shared as proof a supposed photograph of the journalist taken in front of the Eiffel Tower.

However, nothing supports the news that a French journalist was killed in Mali.

A photo of a fashion model

First, a reverse image search (see here how to proceed) makes it possible to find the origin of the photo portrait presented as being that of the journalist Pierre Le Villiers Aros. It is in fact a photo of a French model, Thierry Foucart, as indicated in the caption of the image published in 2022 on a blog devoted to Basque fashion.

Then, we find no mention of a journalist named Pierre Le Villiers Aros in Google News, which is powered by the most popular news sites in France.

Finally, there is no site in the name of Kabylie 24. There is indeed a Kabylie 24 Facebook news page, but it also contains no mention of a French journalist named Pierre Le Villiers Aros or of a post referring to the death of a journalist in Mali in the Kidal region, as shown by a search on the page with the keywords "Kidal" or "Pierre Le Villiers Aros".

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